Hands Clean

I read an interesting article the other day that I wanted to share with ya'll.  It was one of those things that, when I saw it, I was like, 'DUH, why haven't I ever thought of doing that!'  I found it on a great website that offers lots of tips on reducing waste of various types.  Now, before any non-greenies reading this roll your eyes and run off to look at something else, many of their tips are good for, not only the environment, but just flat saving money or protecting your own health.  Such as this article.  Even if you are not concerned with the environment, and shame on you btw if you're not (lol!), it's a great way to avoid flu germs, etc. in public places.  Basically, you keep a small towel in your purse, or vehicle for you guys, and take it in with you to restaurants, stores etc, where you might wash your hands.  Instead of using the paper towels or hand dryers in the restrooms, just use your own personal towel.  I personally HATE those dryers and always feel guilty for using paper towels.  It won't be wet enough to mess up anything in your purse but you can slip it in a baggy or such if you want.  Then just throw it in the laundry when you get home and replace with a clean one.  I think a decent washcloth would work fine but if you are feeling really crafty you could sew up a few simple cloths to use.  I'm thinking you could also buy one of those hair-drying towels and then cut it up into quarters.  They are designed to absorb lots of water and dry quickly.  Anything about 10x10 inches would be small enough to fit in almost any purse, even mine!  The health benefit is that it reduces the number of surfaces you touch in public spaces, thus reducing chances of picking up germs.  And, last but not least, it saves using so many paper towels, which usually come from trees!!
I got my towel, now you get yours!!!!

Scuttle Buttin'

Poor, sweet little Willie (Willamina); her luck has been runnin' about on par with mine for most of her little chicken life.  Ya'll may remember when I posted this picture of her relaxing by the wood stove.  She is THE low hen on the totem pole and she always stays to herself to just avoid getting pecked so much.  Even so, she always seems so happy and had the most beautiful, upright tailfeathers of all the Speckled Sussex.  Although she was always the bottom rung on the ladder, so to speak, she never went around in a cowered position like a lot of hens do.  No sir, she strutted her little independent self around with that banner of a tail standing stock straight up in the air.  She knows she is different but she is still proud.
 

 Unfortunately, I think her inclination to stay by herself probably made her a target of the ol' local fox, something I had worried about and he jumped her near the wood line the other morning.  By some strange coincidence I had just opened the window on that side of the house to talk to the chickens and saw the commotion. (I had not heard anything)  Once again I started screaming and running out into the yard in my sock feet.  It must have been enough because by the time I got down to the garden Willie met me running as fast as her little 6 toes would carry her, heading in the other direction.  I ran after the fox, not sure what I was going to do since I had not taken the time to get a weapon, but I was going to scare it if I could.  After that it took about 30 minutes of searching but I finally found Willie cowering by the propane tank, a pool of blood around her.  My heart sank.  She was one of my favorites.

Luck, or something, was with us that day though because we brought her in and after quite some time of touch and go first-aid, finally managed to get the bleeding to stop for good.  She had a pretty serious gash on her cheek that would open back up if you looked at it too hard but between the liquid bandage and natural clotting it quit and I was much relieved.  She did loose that beautiful tail though.  She is practically bald on her back side and just has those 3 little crumpled feathers left.  We put her in my studio in a big pet carrier with plenty of soft towels and food but for a while she seemed so dejected.  She would eat, which is good, but she let her wings just drag on the floor and would not, or could not, say a peep to me.  By the afternoon though she was some better and holding her wings up a little, drinking lots of water and if I leaned close to her she would chatter real low to me.
I know in the homesteading world I probably failed miserably on this one.  See, Willie is kinda different in that she has never laid an egg as far as I know.  I believe she may be barren.  All her sisters are laying quite well at this point.  So, she's not worth much to most people.  Most would have put her in the freezer before now I suppose, and I guess economically that would be the best thing.  Certainly not put any effort into saving a barren, odd, little hen.  But she is messed up like me.  A peculiar little thing that is still proud to be herself and doesn't bow to the bossy hens; just gives them a wide berth and goes on her way.  I have learned that Speckles are also characteristically VERY loud, but she's not.  She is so mild and sweet and she does have worth to me because she eats bugs and poops!  Both still valuable commodities.  So, call me a softie but I'll do all I can to help her and see she has a long life here.  We moved her down to the Goober Chicken Memorial Pen where she has her own little suite and yard to go out into.  I noticed though today, that she is still a little scared to go out by herself but if I sit in the yard she will happily come out and scratch around.  She is safe in that yard because it is completely fenced but she doesn't understand that.  She understands if she sees me with her though.

To wrap up (so to speak) I did want to show a few things that I have found to be invaluable recently.  With all the crap of this month I have become more of an authority on chicken first aid, although I think this would work on many animals.  As you might imagine, doctoring a squirming chicken can be a challenge, much less getting a Band-Aid on one!  First, we keep plenty of iodine around.  It is an extreme disinfectant and if you've ever had surgery of any kind you'll know they douse you in it practically.  I also keep several very soft artist's brushes, like watercolor brushes, and it works very well to kinda mop the iodine on wounds with those.  They are designed to hold liquid and you don't have to be very accurate when swabbing a wound with one of them.  We also keep a couple of bottles of liquid bandage.  This requires a little more accuracy but you can still blob it on wounds where there is no way you are going to get a bandage on.  I've used it to stop bleeding on cut or pecked open combs, feet and Willie's cheek.  I've also used it on myself.  It does sting a little because it also has an antiseptic in it, so they will squirm a little, but if you can put a towel over their head or such that helps them be still.

Renew

 Once again I come to ya'll with the tired ol' excuse of  "well, I really meant to post again before now!" LOL!  I really did have good intentions and actually had something to write about but stuff just kept coming up and today has been especially long.  I'll get into that in another post.
At any rate,  I did have something I wanted to write about so we'll get on to that.  And yeah, I finally got this orchid to bloom again after 2 years of barrenness!  Yay me!!
I think ya'll may have gotten the idea that for the past oohh, 6 months I had been discouraged about continuing this blog and you would be right if you did have that idea.  I really couldn't put my finger on why exactly; I enjoy writing, even if just for myself and I still felt the urge to continue blogging in the back of my mind.  So, I rolled this over in my head for some time and then finally got distracted by all the crap happenings of this year.  As is usually the case, the answer then came to me after I quit thinking about it.  I've always been pretty fortunate to have supportive readers on this blog and rarely get the "trolls" that I have seen, or at least heard about, on other blogs.  I also publish all comments; I don't censor like some bloggers, so if someone is ugly to me, everybody sees it.  However, I seem to attract trolls in real life, some pretty nasty ones, and I guess I had just gotten kinda tired of being beat upon for advocating the hideous ideas of recycling, growing your own food, non-consumerism, independence etc. etc.  It seemed like every time I turned around someone was calling me an elitist, a snob, delusional, cruel and scary.  Now, I know I'm supposed to be Ms. Strongly Willed and Super Liberated Woman but sometimes anybody can get discouraged.  I have very few friends (in real time) that live like I do AND hold certain personal beliefs.  I know lots that beat me hands down on environmentalism etc. but we hit a wall on matters of faith.  I don't care what people believe in that regard but many today kinda sneer at anything that even resembles Christianity or a faith and can't resist giving their opinion on the subject.  For example, I had someone who I thought was a friend, tell me I had a mental neurosis because I choose to believe in God.  That was just uncalled for.  And conversely, most religious people I know find my lack of consumerism and recycling to be well,,, stupid..  Yes, I know lots of people who don't mind others with differences, thank goodness, but many people today apparently love to attack anyone who doesn't agree with them.  Our society fosters that type behavior in my opinion.  I think a lot of things I encounter also are the result of people assuming that because I hold myself to a high standard on my art, house and such that I will actually look down on anyone that doesn't fit my guidelines or do things the way I would!  Yes, I wish more people saw the importance of good local food (for example) but I really couldn't care less as far as treating people decently.  I simply feel that if I claim to believe in something I better back it up with action or my "beliefs" are not worth a hill of beans. So, I said all that to say I had just gotten sick of the BS.  Just figured it would be best to quietly live my life like I want to and keep my BIG mouth shut.
Then, lo and behold this week I was making my blog rounds and saw several other posts about the importance of people interested in the same things that I am sticking together.  For the exact reason that real life can be...discouraging, shall we say, "weird" homesteading/ sufficiency bloggers must stick together and provide an environment that fosters our ideas and lifestyles.  Green living and that sort of thing is becoming more and more popular but, by and large, we that actually attempt it to any real degree are still waaayy in the minority and often ridiculed in 'real life'.  Now, as I have been told, there are much better references, blogs, etc. for info on gardening, green living etc than my blog but hey!  I'm in there!  I have a few ideas and experience and I have a renewed desire to show how I do things and encourage others to step away from the box.  To realize that you don't have to live like most of society, if you don't want to, and that there are others out here that share those ideas.  That there is a real, ultimately fulfilling, rich life contained in simple living.
So, I will endeavor to persevere, and extra brownie points to anybody that can tell me where that saying comes from! LOL!  And don't worry, I still intend to post about just the silly things in life and maybe some old work stories, travel and stuff like that. Speaking of such though, I have noticed I have a number of new followers lately so if anybody has any questions about any part of my house, gardens, animals etc. or would like me to post on any particular subject please feel free to speak up.  I welcome all comments (even anonymous ones!), suggestions for posts and all that and really do try to respond to all.

Monday Munchies

OK!!  I'm finally getting around to putting up the turkey/ chicken pot pie recipe I promised ya'll.  Now, in looking back at what recipe I used for this I realized that I substituted and/ or improvised quite a lot, so I'm just gonna give you the basics here.  You can use whatever mixture of veggies you prefer and whatever meat you prefer really.  The only thing set in this recipe is the size, the crust and the broth.

Now, I took the leftover turkey and diced it up so I had probably 5-6 cups of meat or so.  You could use a whole fryer size chicken if you want.  Bake or boil it and debone.  My turkey was already baked so I chopped it up (about 1x.5 inch chunks) and set aside.  I took the bones and giblets and made my own broth.  Remove the bones etc. and strain if you want and then pour back into the pot.  I used a combination of potatoes, carrots, onions and mushrooms that I had diced.  It probably was about 5-6 cups of veggies also.  Add these to the broth and simmer for about 15 minutes.  Drain veggies and reserve at least one quart of broth.  Set both aside.

While your veggies are simmering, mix 3 3/4 cups of all-purpose flour and 1 1/4 teaspoons of salt.  Cut in 1 1/4 cups shortening until mixture resembles coarse meal.  This seemed like a lot of shortening to me but it comes out really yummy!  Stir in enough ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time, to moisten dry ingredients and you can work it into a ball.  Cut off 2/3 of dough and chill remaining 1/3.  Roll the 2/3 of dough into a 16x12" rectangle, or there abouts, and fit into the bottom and sides of a 13x9x2 inch baking pan.  Set aside.

Melt 1/4 cup butter in a heavy bottomed sauce pan on low heat.  Add 1/2 cup flour, stirring until smooth.  Cook 1 minute, stirring constantly.  Gradually add broth, cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until thick and bubbly.  Stir in 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper and whatever other spices you might like.  (I usually add a little parsley, paprika and some garlic).  Add diced meat and veggies to this, mix well and pour into pastry-lined pan.

Roll remaining chilled pastry into a 14x10 inch rectangle and layover pie, folding edges under.  Cut several slits in dough for steam to escape.  You can also brush with melted butter if you like.  Bake 400 degrees F. for 30 to 35 minutes.

Add a simple salad with it and it goes further.  Any veggies work really; you can also use broccoli, celery, peas, green beans, rutabaga, whatever!
The main part that I would consistently hold to is the amount of broth, (I hate a dry pot pie and this one was yummy juicy but not overly runny) and the pastry proportions.  The crust was wonderfully tender and flaky.  I also use a non-hydrogenated, organic vegetable shortening but that's up to you.

If you try this recipe please let me know how you like it and what improvements you might add.  Enjoy!!

Snow

Well, we finally did get some snow!  I really had my doubts because it just kept raining but the temps dropped suddenly after noon and then it started snowing!  At times it got very heavy.  I tried to capture that in the photos but it never comes out that well.  It took it a long time to begin to accumulate because there was so much water everywhere still.

The higher areas had much more accumulation naturally; no standing water.  Chigger and I went out for a long walk.  It was nice but it wore me out.  I get times where I feel pretty good but if I do much I get really tired.  Just another wonderful effect of shingles.  Bleh.

We ended up getting about 3 inches maybe.  Not squat really but it was fun while it lasted.  The sun actually came out the next day and pretty much all of it has melted now.  We are supposed to have sunny, dry weather for the next several days and I really hope we do.  We really need it to dry out around here.

Chigger really enjoys the snow but I think she is happy with the sunshine and warmer weather too.  She and the chickens have been sunning themselves often the past few days.  It's kinda unnerving, after the hawk attack, to go outside and see a bunch of chickens and the dog laying flat out on the ground like they are dead!  But, after the first couple of times I realized what they are doing and it's kinda funny.  I admit I found a dry spot to sit and soak up some sunshine myself!

When It Rains It Pours

Our annual winter rains began earlier in the week and hopefully, will end soon.  Just as I hope my run of personal misfortune ends soon.  I would have sworn to you that this rains only occur in the spring, March, April etc. but after checking back through the blog I see that it is actually right on schedule.  And exactly in line with Alabama weather, we are expecting snow tomorrow!  As I heard someone say once, Welcome to Alabama! Bring your whole wardrobe!

I must say the whole blog thing is handy for checking your memory if nothing else and I find more often than not that my memory is the one that is faulty.  There have been several times over the years here that I would have sworn to you that such and such happened but after going back and reading the actual account.......well, okay, so it wasn't quite the way I remembered it.  I have read numerous studies over time about just how faulty the human memory is and so influenced by our own personal beliefs and this blog has proven that to me more than once!

I've been a little worried that the chickens would get a little too close to this flowing water and be swept away but so far they are okay.  Well, safe from the water anyway.  I heard an awful screaming going on today and ran outside to see a hawk pinning one of my babies down on the ground.  I screamed profanities at him and ran out in the yard in my sock feet.  He finally flew away and I was astounded to see the chicken jump up and run towards me, diving under the deck for cover.  I was sure she was already dead.  She did suffer some serious cuts and tears but she was alive, albeit missing a good percentage of her butt feathers.

They refuse to stay out of this rainy weather but do hide under my truck during the worst of the downpours.  I am anxious to see what they think of the snow!
Oh, to JMD, yes, we are getting a fair number of eggs right now; around 8-10 a day.  Some of them are still kinda small but they are getting bigger.

And in keeping with all the wet, miserable gloom I have now developed a nice case of the shingles to go along with all the other crap of this new year. I don't think I would wish shingles on my worst enemy.  It is very painful.  But, I guess on the bright side, my rash is fairly small and only on my shoulder area.

Only poor Scooter looked as miserable as I feel.  Not much is sadder looking than a soaking wet chicken with a gapped up head.

Well, I suppose I have vented enough for this post.  Maybe I'll be back tomorrow or the next day with some pretty snow pictures!!  Or maybe I'll just hide in bed for the next week.  It's a toss up!

Carry On

Well, I've been trying to come up with a decent post to counteract the past few but honestly, things still aren't going that well.  I'm sorry for all the downer posts and I suppose I shouldn't even try to post much of anything until things improve but I wanted to put something up that didn't contain some horrible information.  I thought I'd just put up a few photos but I've even had trouble finding anything interesting to photograph due to the terribly dreary, rainy weather we have had for countless days lately.  So, you get chicken pictures!
The ladies, at least, are doing well and I sold one more rooster for a decent price so now we have only the one, Gaucho, and the girls are much relieved.

We've been having one of our southern warm spells so the garden has been doing well.  I've harvested all the main heads from the broccoli so they are now putting out the side shoots.  With 16 plants I can harvest enough side shoots at once to make a dinner.  The chickens did get in the garden the other day, somehow, and ate about 1/3 of the bok choy before I discovered them but that's okay.  I had been giving them a head every other day anyway so they would have more greens.

Chigger and I have been going on many walks lately, even in the rain sometimes.  I am very, very ready for spring to be here.  I lost my enthusiasm for the Christmas season so we cut that all short and took everything down well before Epiphany and I'm actually cooking our New Year's meal today, because that got put off too.  After this, I am ready for a new season; ready for springtime!  However, the rain is coming back and they are predicting showers and storms for the next 3 or 4 days.  And the cold is coming back too.  I wish we could at least get a little snow if it's not going to be spring.

So, life marches on and I limp along behind it until I can catch my breath and get to feeling better. I took a little road trip to Atlanta the other day to pick up a load a clay and other supplies, so we have been getting out some.  I also bought a nice book on landscaping and have been pouring over that, planning some of the final gardens, walks, patios and such around the house.  Life will improve again but sometimes it just takes a while for the sun to come back out.

Good-Bye Sweet Friend Part 2

I sincerely had intended to post again before now on a bit lighter note than I left ya'll, but it hasn't quite turned out that way.  I feel like in retaliation for all the joys of 2012 the new year of 2013 has decided to kick the living shit out of me.  At least for the first little bit.  I found out this past Saturday evening that a friend had passed away unexpectedly.  Really, I was more friends with her husband, as we worked together, but she was a dear, sweet lady that never seemed to meet a stranger.  They had even attended my wedding; I laughed that she seemed just as excited as I was that day.  But the true tragedy is that this exuberant, ever-smiling lady found herself in enough despair to take her own life.  I mourn for her but my heart aches for her husband and children left behind, because you all know that I know, all too well, that horror.  Please say a prayer for these people if you are inclined that way.

I will be back soon and on a better note I promise.  Just sorta had the wind knocked out of my sails lately.  I haven't forgotten about the pot pie recipe either!  I'll post it soon.
And hug your loved ones for me please.

P.S.  thank you all from the bottom of my heart for all your so kind comments and emails about Grendal.  It really did help me feel some better.

Good-Bye Sweet Friend

This is, without a doubt, going to be the hardest post I've ever had to write, but I have to just go ahead and get it over with.  Ya'll know Grendal had been sick lately, with what the vet said was asthma, but it turned out to be a bit more serious than that and she passed away at 2:30 a.m. on the first day of this new year.  After I had taken her to the doctor back in December she did seem to improve somewhat but I noticed that by Christmas her breathing was somewhat labored again but she was still eating and all, just sleeping a lot.  I was giving her some natural asthma meds and tried a little Benedryl too, which did seem to help some.  She got a bit of an appetite after taking that.  By Sunday though, she was refusing most food and water and wouldn't get up much.  I gave her a tad more Benedryl and a little respiratory antibiotic I had and early Monday she was up and moving around, so I thought perhaps it was bronchitis or pneumonia, something that could be cured.  I had to take her to another vet because the one I had been using was still closed for remodeling but they were very kind and saw her immediately.  The look on the doctor's face when I told him how she was acting did not indicate good news however.  A couple of X-rays later and it was confirmed to him that she probably had FIP (feline infectious peritonitis) which there is no cure for.  There is no real test for it either, nor a vaccine but he said if he could draw some of the fluid off her chest it would help him diagnose it further and help her breathe, so I said okay.  They drew off a fair amount and it did seem to help her.  It also confirmed his diagnosis.  He was very kind and honest and I appreciated that.  He gave her a shot that he said would help make her more comfortable and he seemed to think she might have some time, maybe a few weeks.  So, I went from thinking it was maybe an infection from asthma to being told she only had a short time to live.
I took her home and she did seem to feel a little better, even eating and drinking a good bit right away but in a couple of hours her breathing was very hard again.  By this time the vet was closed again and wouldn't reopen until today.  We tried to make her as comfortable as we could and she didn't seem to be in pain, just breathing hard.  But I know that in itself is uncomfortable.  Around midnight she didn't want to lay in her bed anymore but wanted to be on the floor, so I got a pillow and laid on the floor with her.  She always seemed to enjoy that.  I talked to her and assured her if she felt it was time to go that I would be okay.  I told her she had done a good job of looking after me those many years but She could go rest if she wanted to.  I don't feel I gave up on her but was simply willing to trade her discomfort for mine.  About 2 hours later she was gone.

I know many people don't care for cats or understand how people can get very attached to pets but she was something else.  She was not really a pet but really like a friend.  Never a time that I was sick and in bed that she was not right there beside me the whole time.

I guess in a lot of ways, she was much like me too.  She could be a grumpy ol' turd if you got too close to her tail and she did not care for other animals at all.  But she was a better person than a lot of humans I know, and though never a pushy or demanding cat, she welcomed everybody that came into the house.

She was never a great hunter cat and had gotten kinda pudgy over the years but she always kept her manners.  She was a southern cat after all, you know.  She always amazed the people at the vet clinics, the few times she had to go, because she never freaked out or got upset being in a place like that.  They were always delighted at how she would just sit calmly on the exam table and "chat" with the doctor when he talked to her.  She was better at taking shots than me even!

Even with me, she would always "ask" to get on the couch with me.  She would wait patiently on the floor until I noticed her and asked her to come sit with me.  Or she might poke me gently with her paw to get my attention.

We buried her behind the house, under the dogwoods and ferns.  It's a cool, peaceful place and in the spring I'll plant some catnip beside her grave.  She loved her some catnip.

So, good-bye sweet friend.  I miss you terribly but I am glad you can rest now.

Warm Tummies

 Blustery...No better word to call to mind the sleet and wind swept days of this past week.  Damp, bone-chilling cold with marshmallowy, grey clouds that settle so low on the surrounding hills and mountains it's hard to tell where earth ends and the heavens begin.  Days and nights best spent next to a warm fire and an equally warm drink.
I fully intended to be a slug this week and rest up from the holiday production rush but I honestly didn't mean to carry it this far! 

I have been cooking a little but saving the grand effort for New Years Day.  I took that turkey leftovers and made this wonderful pot pie.  I don't mean to sound like I'm bragging; I mean, it wasn't my recipe, I just copied what somebody else had done.  It was wonderful though and the pastry topping was really nice.  Fresh out of the oven it was the perfect thing for a cold, winter's day and there was enough of it to last for 2 suppers and a couple of lunches.  (Supper in the South is what most people refer to as dinner.)

If any of you would like the recipe I'll be happy to share.  So, every scrap of that ol' turkey got ate up and we certainly appreciated it.

Don't worry though, we don't leave the animals out of it!  Chigger always get a warm meal and I often fix a warm oatmeal and rice breakfast for the girls.  They LOVE oatmeal and they are steadily laying more and larger eggs.  We should be back to selling eggs soon.  That will be good as feed prices have continued to rise.  I'm so thankful we went to the trouble to get these hens and provide a good place for them to live and in return they provide us with a wonderful (and tasty) protein source.  I'm even going to try an authentic eggnog for our New Year's celebration, since we have such a surplus of eggs.

I am going to have to start supplementing their food with a little more greens from the garden though.  Since the cold has really hit, the grass is gone and they really love any greens we can come up with.  I'll tell ya'll a little more about my plans in another post.
All in all it's been a lovely, quiet week and I've been feeling rather blessed.  I hope you all have time to relax also and maybe grab a nap and snuggle here and there. 

Silent Night

Well, now that the Consumas season (as I call it) is over with I have really been enjoying my Christmas season.  We had friends over for a nice turkey dinner on Christmas Eve.  It was quite enjoyable and we all ate like pigs!  Or I did anyway.  I really enjoy hanging out with people who you can actually talk to and have enjoyable conversations.  I was not looking too forward to going to my sister's on Christmas Day but Mama really wanted to go and I was her ride.  It was going to be stormy and such and she didn't want to drive that far.  I don't mind taking Mama anywhere she wants to go but didn't know how enjoyable this was going to be since my sister hasn't really been speaking to my brother or me.  Ya'll know my family obligational type things have been wearing thin in recent years and so this didn't look to be too much fun.  Turns out it was okay.  Not great but okay, and with the stormy weather coming in nobody stayed too long so I was able to get back home at a good hour. 

I don't know if any of ya'll have ever tried brining a turkey, or any other poultry, before cooking but after doing this I am HOOKED!  It was wonderful!  Soaking the turkey in the salt water solution makes it so tender and moist.  Very, very tasty.  EDIT!!  Do NOT use a self-basting or flavored turkey!!  Use only a plain, unadorned bird.  I cleaned a cooler I had that was big enough to fit the turkey but not too big, then dissolved one cup of kosher salt in about 2 quarts of hot water.  I then added about 1 1/2 gallons of cold water to the cooler and poured the salt mixture in.  You want to use about 1/2 cup of salt to every gallon of water.  I also then added about 1 cup of apple cider vinegar.  Some people add various herbs to the water but I left that for the actual cooking.  Then, dump a bunch of ice over the turkey, making sure the turkey is actually submerged in the brine.  I also put it breast down so that area was definitely under the water.

Let the turkey soak in this brine for 12-24 hours.  Make sure to add ice if needed to keep it cold.  Then, on the day of cooking, take the turkey out, rinse it well and pat dry.  I let mine air dry while I was preparing the seasonings etc.  I then coated the turk in melted butter and sprinkled well with powdered garlic, parsley, pepper and stuffed it loosely with onion and whole sage.  I did NOT add any more salt.  I then placed it in my oiled LeCreuset dish and baked it at 350 F. for about 3 1/2- 4 hours, basting occasionally.  Anyway, the meat thermometer registered 180 F.  I also covered the turk loosely with aluminum foil about half way through to keep it from over browning.  YUM_OOO!!

Since today was Boxing Day I fixed my usual little gift for our mail lady and took it down to the mailbox.  She's very nice and has made an effort to thank me for remembering her on Christmas.  It's kinda sad more people don't do that for mail carriers and such; not that what I do is all that great but it's something and helps her pay for a little gas.  (In our rural areas many carriers have to pay that themselves and use their own vehicle).  I also gave the chickens and wild birds some treats and extra food today.  We actually got some snow too! so it was nice to piddle around outside for a while and enjoy that.  The snow was very light and it didn't lay but that didn't really matter.  All in all it was a very relaxing day and we enjoyed just goofing off.

 Anywhoo, I hope all of ya'll have had a wonderful holiday if you celebrate Christmas or any of that.  Did any of you try anything new or different this year?

Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas

I wish you all a joyous day filled with love and kindness.  Thank you all for reading my blog for so long and being kind enough to send a thoughtful and encouraging word my way from time to time.  I truly appreciate our friendships.

"What is Christmas? It is tenderness for the past, courage for the present, hope for the future. It is a fervent wish that every cup may overflow with blessings rich and eternal, and that every path may lead to peace.” ~ Agnes M. Pahro

Merry Christmas and a Very Happy New Year!

Holiday

Yes!!! it's over!!  My holiday rush is over!!  We made the last delivery on Friday and then took the rest of the day to relax and piddle around town some and on Saturday I didn't do much of anything but look for a Christmas tree.  I suppose you could find a lot of things to complain about in my state, and many people do, but I have to say that in this area the Buy Local/ Buy Small Business movement is well supported and I am very grateful for that.

I was telling my Mom that about every time I made a delivery, which was 3 times this past week, almost all that I had previously delivered would already be sold.  That's a great feeling even though it has worn me out!
Now I have time to relax a little though and enjoy the holidays.  I know a lot of people would be saying, "but Christmas is almost here and will be over soon; you missed it!"  Well, ya'll know I don't adhere to convention so the holidays are just starting to me.  I have until January 5th (or 6th) to celebrate!!  The way it's supposed to be!

I'll be doing another Mug Giveaway this year too!  I'm doing one on Facebook too but this will be separate.  However, I would ask that you only participate in one or the other if we are FB friends.  But of course, ya'll would understand that already.

So yesterday, Chigger, Callie and I headed up into the woods in search of the perfect tree.  It has been raining here quite a lot lately but cleared up and gave us a window of opportunity.  We really enjoyed just hiking in the woods and taking our time.  I found 4 trees that were newly blown over from a storm.  It must have been quite a storm because these were fairly large hardwoods and they have just been snapped over.  They would make excellent firewood but getting to them would be an ordeal.
So, I finally made a tree selection and whacked it down.  It was really good exercise getting that thing back to the house even though it was mostly downhill from where I cut it.  They always look smaller outside and then you get them in the house and it's like the Griswold family tree!  Oh well, I have the room for it so what the heck!  Here you can see Chigger and Callie standing guard over the tree against the chickens.  No pooping on the tree!!

Grendal says the hell with all that work, I'm going to take a nap!  She got her new bed a little early for Christmas because she's not been feeling well.  I had to take time last week also to take her to the vet when I noticed she was having a lot of labored breathing.  Turns out Ms. Grendy Cat has asthma.  Really bad asthma.  She got a couple of shots and the vet was real nice and explained her treatment options.  The shots seem to have helped but due to possible bad side effects we don't want her to have to take them a lot if it can be helped.  I'm going to try a homeopathic treatment I found and if that doesn't work she may have to use an inhaler (yes, they actually make such a thing) as they say the inhalers don't have as many side effects.

So, I hope to be back soon with more Christmas and other posts!  I hope all of ya'll are having a nice weekend and maybe even off work for a few days.

Oh yeah, to Hayley:  thanks for the tip on your aunt's store.  I will certainly check it out.  I had been wanting to find a place in Gadsden and have been up there a few times over the past year or so but hadn't come up with anything.  They've really fixed downtown up nice and I figured there had to be some galleries or something there that would be a possible market.

Old-Fashioned Garden

Since I've started gardening what I would call "seriously", I've been astounded at the fact I never really thought about gardening throughout the cold months until a couple of years ago.  This is compounded by the fact I live in the South, where winter gardening is relatively easy, but the sad truth is I had never thought about it because I had never really seen it done, even here.  Oh, you might see some people grow a few cabbage in the fall but by Thanksgiving everybody had rolled up the garden until warm weather.

Of course, I didn't grow up eating a lot of broccoli, brussel sprouts, asparagus and other "exotic" veggies, so it didn't occur to anybody around me that you would want to grow those things.  We just ate summer veggies that had been canned for the winter, but no thought of veggies that would actually grow in those cold months, or "seasonal eating" as we say now.  I enjoy seasonal eating and gardening and my winter garden has improved quite a lot over the past few years.  Constant amendment of the soil is paying off!  Of course, we do put up a good bit of summer fruits and veggies for winter consumption but I really think seasonal gardening is an important part of a healthy diet and self-sufficiency.  Cool weather crops are really nutritious and fresh is always better than frozen or canned.  You can't beat going grocery shopping in your yard either. 

This year I may have planted enough broccoli, I'm not sure yet!  It was kinda just sitting there for some time but after a few rains we just recently got it has really taken off!  I should be able to harvest a head or two soon. Good thing, I just cooked the last frozen bag I had put up in anticipation of eating fresh next.  I should have lots of fresh broccoli for various Christmas dinners and lunches. 
Even after cutting the heads the plant continues to put out side clusters, so these can be gathered for quite some time to make easy side dishes or quick snacks.  The big leaves also get harvested a few at a time after most of the broccoli has been picked.  These leaves go to the chickens to supplement their winter diet and make up for lack of green grass.  They really love broccoli greens and cabbage.  In fact, they were SO enthusiastic about the cabbage leaves that, in the spring when my hostas started coming up, they thought, hey, these look like cabbage, and mowed every one of them down to the ground.  They had walked all around the hostas for weeks without bothering them until one day I gave them cabbage leaves and I guess they thought the leaves looked similar.  Oh well.

The Bok Choy I planted from seed has done really well.  I haven't actually eaten this yet though.  I love it in a stir fry but just haven't had the meat I wanted or the gumption to make one yet.  Fortunately, since it's cool, it can just kinda sit in the garden without bolting or spoiling until I get ready for it.

 The new girls, and the old ones that were molting, have mostly began their laying and we are getting 8-10 eggs a day.  Of course, some of them are still small eggs but they are getting bigger.  It won't be long we'll be needing to start selling eggs again.  We finally sold 5 of the new hens and 2 older ones.  I got $12 each for the young ones and we sold Pretty Hen and Prissy for $5 each.  I kinda hated to sell them but we just had way too many chickens for that coop house.  So, that paid for a bit of feed and the cost of ordering those chicks to begin with. 
 So, finally we are starting to see a bit of return on some things instead of constantly putting out.  Of course, it's all a cycle and sometimes you have to wait a little but hopefully I'll get better about planning for these things so there is much less time between cycles.

I believe I told ya'll I finally finished all the corporate pottery orders I had, so now is just making general stock.  These are the honey pots I had to make for the last order.  I thought most of them came out well. 

Christmas is drawing near however, and my time to produce a tremendous amount of stock is getting much shorter.  After about the 18th or 19th I won't be throwing much, just firing the last bit of stuff to take in.  That's well and good however because then I can wind down and take time to enjoy my holiday decorating, cooking and just relaxing. 

Treat

  Although I truly enjoy being able to work at a home-based studio and supply the rest of our living through gardening and animals, I can get severe cabin fever at times.  You long time readers know of my occasional wanderlust, something my old job used to satisfy to some extent but no more and since being so hard pressed these past few weeks to get those orders out I had really, really started to gnaw at the straps, so to speak.  I became so desperate one evening that it was actually liberating to go down to our local McD's (a place I fairly despise) for a salad and then a short shopping trip to CVS and the new Tractor Supply.  I know, I know.....the excitement of it is vividly tangible, no?  Of course, I had to be home within a hour or so to check the kiln but at least I did get some "fun" time.
So, what's a homesteading/ earth hippie type to do when you start clawing at the walls??  I think it's something most of us in this category deal with.  I like to think of myself as a fairly gung-ho recluse but I do like to get out on occasion.  Usually, my once a week or so trip into Birmingham is enough.  Well, with the last of the major orders completed and ready to deliver, I decided a Fun Day was in order.

 Now, let me emphasis, this was a splurge.  I mean, it didn't cost majorly really; but it was a bit more than a normal lunch out.  But it was very nice and I had a great time.  First, I got the delivery out of the way!  Once that was done with I made my way to the Southside of Birmingham and to one of it's more well-known restaurants; Bottega's!!  Here, is a nice article on the place and it's founding chef.  Unknown to most of the country, Birmingham has quite a few culinary treasures.  It was a delightful meal and experience.

I had a Bibb lettuce/ Apple salad with Gorgonzola and walnuts.  YUM.  I believe I'll make these at home now.

 This was the Chicken and Tortellini with Pine Nuts.  There was a bunch of other stuff in there too.  Very yummy also.  The waiters were also very friendly and personable.  None of this looking down their nose at you while impersonating a French maitre' d.
My only complaint is that you could have hung meat in the ladies restroom but...at least it made you appreciate the warm sunlight in the dining area.

The Creme Brulee' was divine.  Exquisite.  I long for it now even.

The restaurant is located in a semi-historic, hip part of Birmingham just outside of downtown and in warm weather it's a great place to walk the short distance to a couple of parks and cool, local bars.  In my much younger days I used to live not far from here in an older, "quaint" apartment but, I was far too poor to be able to do more than peer over this fence at the world on the other side.